Is Instagram ruining the places we love? Is it taking away the richness, randomness, and original intent of travel? If you didn’t get a thousand likes as a result of your post, does it even matter that you went?
Instagram has been credited with contributing to overtourism, narcissism, and a growing trend of fake and staged vacation shots. Are these claims legitimate? Let’s investigate.
A Platform for Art
Instagram’s original mission statement is to capture and share the world’s moments. In a 2017 interview with Instagram’s co-founder (who resigned a few months ago, by the way), he claimed that nothing has changed about the app, since we still use it on our phones, just like we always did.
I beg to differ, Kevin.
Instagram used to be about a genuine love for sharing what we experience. Lately it has become about faking it to make it.
Changing the Nature of Photography
Writing will always be my original love, but photography has become my favorite form of self-expression over the years.
I have photography to thank for pushing me to farther places, higher summits, more remote corners of the earth, and for helping me to fall in love with the night sky.
There’s no way I would have woken up in the middle of the night multiple times to drive for several hours just to catch the early morning light if not for my love of photography. I didn’t have any particular interest in the Moon cycles back then, and while I enjoyed the sunset, I didn’t make it a point to see it nearly as often as I do now.
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My love for photography motivated me to come up with my own style of expressing what I see in the world, it has made me more confident with myself, my body, and has even empowered me to become an entrepreneur.
This medium is beautiful, and captivating, and I am so glad that cameras are becoming more accessible, that more people are taking an interest, and that a profession that once meant barely scraping by is the next rockstar dream job. Who knew? Six years ago, this was practically unthinkable but now, people make a living off of one little app: Instagram.
The Good
Instagram has given creatives a platform for sharing our work that doesn’t require that we have agents or photography degrees. We can put forth our art and let the public decide how they feel about it, at least that’s the idea, but it’s not how it’s been in practice. After all, we can’t have nice things.
I used to find Instagram to be inspiring. It’s how I learned about freediving with whales, the Salinas de Maras in Peru, which greatly influenced the itinerary for my first group trip to Peru, Lavertezzo in Switzerland, Saxon Switzerland, and probably countless other trips I forgot were originally inspired by Instagram. The same is true for you, right?
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But something changed. I can’t pinpoint when it happened, but at some point opening my feed only made me feel worse and worse.
Is this an art form, or is it a series of staged photos, food spreads that will just get thrown away after the photo shoot, and a shortcut to try to get freebies? Are we bartering our self-esteem for likes? Are we hedging our art for the possibility of 15 minutes of fame? Are we throwing ourselves on the mercy of the algorithm for our sense of worth?
The Bad
A recent study called #StatusOfMind by the Royal Society for Public Health and the Young Health Movement in the UK has shown that anxiety and depression has increased by 70% in young people over the past 25 years. That’s massive when you consider that over 90% of 16-24 year olds are active on social media.
The report includes “a table of social media platforms according to their impact on young people’s mental health. YouTube topped the table as the most positive, with Instagram and Snapchat coming out as the most detrimental to young people’s mental health and wellbeing.”
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A deeper look into the report shows increased stress over body image, fear of missing out, cyberbullying, with no real action taken, a decrease in sleep, and an increase in anxiety and depression.
How did we get here? Well, anytime something is good, it will eventually become too good to be true. People will always find a way to exploit it.
How can you appear more popular than you are? Join groups of people who agree to comment on each other‘s posts in order to trick the algorithm into pushing yours up (AKA comment pods). Want to grow quickly? How many loop giveaways do you see on the feed these days? Have you heard of a super like – where you can pay big influencers to like your posts so that you look like you’re in the inner circle? What about courses on becoming a success on Instagram that scam people out of $500 a pop, coming from someone who bought followers?
A study by anti-fraud company Sway Ops estimates a single day’s worth of posts tagged #sponsored or #ad on Instagram contained over 50 percent fake engagements. They also “found that out of 2,000 posts, an average of only 36 sponsored posts made per day contained no Instagram pod activity, fake comments, fake likes or uneven ratios of bot followers to engagements”. Whoa.
Is this art anymore?
The Ugly
I find myself yearning again for how traveling used to be. Gosh it’s not that long ago, but the landscape of travel has completely changed since Instagram came out and influencers started to appear.
I slept in $2-5/night dorms for almost 2 years, took the cheap way everywhere, and never really imagined pitching fancy hotels in exchange for likes. I’m so glad that I got to experience this before the dawn of Instagram. The Wi-Fi was bad, people sometimes took pictures with their phones, Snapchat didn’t exist, and Instagram stories didn’t either.
Back then traveling seemed to have a different quality. It was about getting lost, it was about seeing how far you could go on a dollar, it was about taking the local cargo ferries and passing your glasses around while sitting for nearly 24 hours on hard wooden benches. I didn’t care about getting the ‘gram, I just cared about going one more day.
But lately places have been getting overwhelmed with overtourism. People seem to want to go to all of the same places and take the same pictures. How many times have you seen Cappadocia, a riad in Morocco, or the flamingos in Aruba?
I’m not immune. I go places specifically because I want to get the photo that I think people will love on Instagram. It’s why I went to the treehouse in Nusa Penida. Sure, I wanted to see it for myself, but I also knew it would blow up on Instagram. Is that what Kristin six years ago would’ve done? Who even am I?
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Now I find myself refreshing to see if there are more likes. On the days that a photo of mine blows up, I’m like, this is great! People like me! On the days that it doesn’t, to be honest I’m crushed:
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I know it’s not just me who feels this way, social media is designed to keep us craving this approval, coming back for more for the possibility of more likes.
But lately the algorithm has changed again, and barely anyone sees what I post anymore. I never joined any comment pods so I don’t have a way of pushing up my engagement, and I honestly don’t want to. I don’t want it to be fake. But sometimes I wonder, is my art worthless now? Do people not like it anymore? I put so much into this app and building this account. So much effort, and literally blood sweat and tears, who am I if I don’t do this anymore?
It’s not a style anymore but a way of life. We are buying our self-worth and the currency is likes.
I Just want this Bubble to Burst
Maybe it sounds insane to want something to disappear that I put so much work and effort into, but I feel like Instagram completely changed the way we travel and share, and not for the better. It also impacts the way we feel about ourselves. My self-esteem rises and falls with likes and I know I’m not the only one. It’s designed that way, and it’s an evil monster we’re all complicit in feeding.
For my part, I’m not sure what to do. But I’m taking a break for a little while. I want to evaluate how I come across with everything that I put out there, including the blog, videos, everything. I don’t want it to be about the likes, I want it to be about the gift itself. Because caring about the social media engagement, a fake algorithm that I’m comparing myself to, has been a recipe for self doubt and stress, and that’s not why I got into this.
I didn’t get into this to ruin the places that I care about. I didn’t get into it to ruin an art medium that I love, and still want to share as a form of self expression.
I still think that photography is a beautiful way of sharing how we see the world. I didn’t do it to copy anyone else. I did it because I love it. I still want to share that love and I still want to teach other people how to make the medium their own – how to take command of how they portray themselves and draw the same worth out of it that I once did, and still do, when I forget about the likes and focus on the art.
I’ll see you guys in 2019. For now, I just want to put down my phone, and find the love of the art again.
What do you think? Are you over Instagram?
Crystal says
Love and appreciate the honesty of this post. My biggest annoyance which you’ve probably seen traveling too is when there’s a LINE at a beautiful spot because everyone is treating it like a fashion or photoshoot. It drives me nuts how often people are posting stories / live updates to the point where the moment is lost. I think we lose the ability to be more present and to engage in our surroundings if there’s just a bunch of people waiting for that perfect shot. I do totally agree with you on the good things — I love looking at people’s travel photos to get me a better sense of where I’m going
Kristin says
Yeah I’ve seen that too. It’s funny because I want the picture too. It’s like being mad I’m stuck in traffic without thinking, hey I’m part of the traffic.
Alex says
I love the honesty of this post. I’ve had to step away at time because Instagram can definitely me feel like I’m missing out sometimes. Honestly, what I’ve found most annoying is seeing so many sponsored ads and influencers unboxing all the free stuff they get or the places they get to stay at for free. Like ok cool you got to stay at the Ritz or whatever fancy hotel for free to show me how great it is but I could never afford that anyway. I completely respect that it’s a way of making a living but it just feels like it’s gotten out of hand lately and is creating this ultra-aspirational content that for some people isn’t really attainable. I think that also contributes to bumming people out. I also agree with the above that travelling now I see lines of people trying to get that shot for insta or crowds in trendy destinations that don’t go for the cultural exchange or respect locals but are basically there just for content. Ultimately, anything that can inspire someone to travel or experience something new is great, but I think people also need to focus on how enriching travel can be vs the # of likes you get from a travel photo.
Kristin says
Yes I hear you on that. I’m reevaluating how I want to produce content as well. I always wanted it to be inspiring and attainable because I agree, almost nobody can go on forever at only high-end places so it makes everyone who doesn’t do that or can’t do that feel inadequate and it’s just sad because staying at the Ritz is honestly not better than a beach shack in terms of happiness, feeling fulfilled on a trip, and having incredible experiences. In some way I think it removes us from them.
Christina says
Hi Kristin. I’ve followed you for years & years. I stumbled across your blog in 2014 when I was 2 years out of college, and hated my corporate sales job. Your story inspired me, and more than anything resonated with me enough to quit my job and backpack through Europe, and then I did it again 2 years later in South East Asia. Your post is so raw, so real, and I loved it. I couldn’t agree with you more about Instagram. For awhile I tried to “make it” on Insta, but I realized how fake it was. I joined a comment pod & became overwhelmed. When I traveled in Europe, it was different, so very relaxed, and I only took pictures for my personal memories. Two years later in SEA, you’re right, it was different. Everyone was posting in real time, the WiFi was everywhere, iPhones were in the air during Balinese traditional dances. Selfies in front of temples. It felt so different. I took a 3-mo break from social media in April, and came back with a new sense of love for myself & figured out what is important to me, and likes weren’t one of them. I am now on private with only friends & family, sharing very little, and am so much happier. I want you to do what’s best for you, but please know you have true followers out there who have always loved your REAL content & blog posts. I’ve learned so much from you & the originals (The Blonde Abroad & Adventurous Kate) , and will follow whatever platform you decide to make yours. I hope this comment brings you a sense of purpose, and let’s you know your mission was never about likes, it was empowering girls to get out there & see this badass world. Seeing you do it showed me I could. Merry Christmas. 🙂
Kristin says
Aw thank you so much, Christina! Your comment means so much. I love what Kate and Kiersten put out there too and I think we can often tell what’s real and what isn’t. I’m so encouraged to read that you took time off and came back to it with a more solid sense of what you wanted out of social media and that it felt better to you. Merry Christmas to you as well! <3
YP says
I love the honesty of this post and this reader’s comment/yours as well. Christina makes a great point I can relate do, going private and feeling happier etc.
I personally go on Instagram once every 2 days and it feels overwhelming and ultra aspirational can often border on feeling ultra fomo and end up being disillusioning. A lot of my industry is on there (jewelry, ahhhh!) and makes their money that way, but I do not find it natural.
Definitely a point to ponder now & in to the future. Great conversation to start. Thanks Kristin.
Gina says
Kristin~ As always your raw, positive and very vulnerable posts is why I follow you on Instagram and subscribe to your blog.
For me, I am an authentic solo female budget traveler and that’s what drew me to your blog, Instagram and your book. Nomadic Matt, introduced me to you!
Anytime you make yourself vulnerable or put yourself front and center, you risk being hurt.
From this post, you sound hurt, frustrated and disenchanted. Truly, I’m sorry.
Be your authentic self! Be real! I hope your are in California surrounded by family and true friends that live and care for you! Nourish your soul, yourself with what you need!
I’m rooting for you!
In friendship ❤️
Gina @junketing_gina
Kristin says
Definitely disenchanted but thank you so much for the support Gina! You’re so kind and I love that you’re always here supporting and are so connected to female empowerment and living your dreams.
Zuri says
Throughout this year, I have unfollowed countless accounts that post mostly sponsored content. It’s so irritating to see a beautiful living room, a cute cat, and happy people with a random piece of luggage in the middle as some sort of “ad.” I refuse to like or support those posts because they anger me. Every fourth post is an actual ad anyway, I don’t need to see someone showing off all the free stuff they’ve gotten while I’ll never be able to buy it all myself.
I stopped following a lot of massive accounts too, the ones that seem to only post things for the validation. I prefer the accounts that post meaningful words to go along with the beautiful photos. Your account (and book and blog) is one that I always feel is genuine and I’ll always follow along!
Kristin says
Thanks for the feedback and I’m so glad you like what I put out there! I can understand your frustration with the ads. It’s a balancing act as a creator to make a living but stay authentic, and I think that’s what’s led to the faking it to make it. It’s so helpful to read what you (and the others who have commented) have to say on this topic and I’m learning so much. Authenticity will always feel better, and it does to me too <3
Dan Thompson says
Man, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had this conversation over the past year. It’s crazy!
I don’t make my living from my photography or my blog, for me it’s just a hobby, so I get that my footing is going to be different than yours (I’m assuming here that you do make your living from it). That said, I do my photography for me, and me alone. If I don’t sell another photo, I’m good with it. While everyone on Instagram is claimering to make their Top 9 thing, I’m currently working on my 5 Favorite Photos of the year post (one of the reasons I love this time of year… the introspection is fun!). It’s a slight change of perspective, but one that will completely change how you feel about your work. Social media can be an awesome tool (where else would potentially 1000s of people seen your photo, save a Nat Geo pub or something like that, which most people wouldn’t land anyway), but man… It can be draining too, as you’ve pointed out.
An interesting side note (or I hope you’ll find it interesting anyway), I was struggling earlier this fall with this notion of traveling to the same places everyone else does and getting essentially the same shots everyone else does. I was talking about it to my friend who is a scientist, and he said, you know, when you’re starting out as a scientist, you repeat all the classic experiments to prove that you know what you’re doing and can follow a process to get a known outcome. The same can be true of photography. BUT, as with science, no one ever created anything new and amazing, just repeating what has already been done. At some point we have to branch out and do our own thing. A lot of people (including what feels like ALL of Instagram) get stuck in the first phase, repeating what others have done. What I’ve found with my own work, those “postcard” shots rarely make it into my favorites list for the year. It’s almost always the shots I took *after* the postcard shot was taken, and out of my mind.
Anyway, thanks for your honesty in this post, and good luck on your soul searching journey! There’s a lot.of.us on it with you!
Kristin says
Thanks for your insights, Dan. I wish I could remember where I read it now, but I once read either a book or an article that talked about how almost no idea is original. Shakespeare’s work, and many religious texts even, are stories retold. I agree you have to do the photography for you, because you love it, it’s just going to be a cookie cutter version of everything else otherwise. I feel like that’s all I see when I open my feed lately but I totally agree that it’s sometimes the random, unplanned shots that I love the most.
Cristina says
It does. You can check the pros and cons on both sides, of course. But I would like to highlight one thing, that comes to me first when I saw the question:
if you do things for the outside world, you forget about your inner world and the very ultimate goal of traveling: absorbing in the moment and the journey. disconnect and reflect…
Kristin says
Yes!
Craig says
I really enjoy following you and a number of other travel blogger “influencers”. I started following you folks a few years back because you are all beautiful people (inside and out) visiting beautiful places. All I’ve ever wanted to do was see the world but it just hasn’t happened (yet). In the meantime, I live vicariously through you all. I’ve definitely have seen changes over the years. Product placements and advertisements are far more common. I realize it is an income stream to support blogger travel costs but there is just so much more of it now. I really don’t like the places that have set up big swings, platforms, treehouses, etc. just to attract the gramers. Makes it feel like the photo spots at disney. In the end, I also don’t care for the filters and photoshopping. I like real, well composed, well lit pics.
I still think travel bloggers serve a good purpose.and I hope you don’t simply quit doing what you do. I’m sure you’ll find a way to keep things real 🙂
Happy New Year, see you soon… I hope.
Kristin says
Aw thank you for the kind words. I’ll be back.
Yanqin says
I felt this intensely when I went to Vinicunca (Rainbow Mountain). I had been planning to a multi-day hike in the area (Ausangate) and had read that it was a pretty tough hike. Was surprised when I arrived in Cusco to see so many travel agencies offering day trips to Rainbow Mountain, but stuck to my own plans anyway.
When I saw the crowds at Rainbow Mountain, I was shocked. It’s not because I didn’t get the perfect shot of the mountains without hoards of people, but the environmental degradation that resulted: the eroded trails, the porta toilets that made me hope and pray the sewage is disposed safely), the bits of litter. I thought it was great the locals are benefitting from the extra income, but I also wonder if they weren’t better off setting some entry limits – after all they’re the ones who lose out if the environment is degraded over the long term.
I felt bad after that for being one of the people who posted photos of Rainbow Mountain, because I might be driving people there without regard for the human impact (never mind that my IG acct is private and not that many people see my photos, hah). IG is a great resource for discovering things, but the downsides of exposing vulnerable places to irresponsible and flippant travellers also pain me.
A suggestion: if you’re keeping Rainbow Mountain on your Peru tour itinerary, perhaps you can find a way to use your platform and your following to promote travelling there in a more responsible way 🙂
Thanks for writing this post to get the conversation going. All the best with 2019!
Kristin says
I hear you. I think we have to consider our impact, but what we are doing to the landscape, and what our sudden departure from a place would do to it economically.
Katie says
I relate to this SO. MUCH. I hate myself for the amount of time I spend trying to get the best shot vs chilling and enjoying the location. I’m trying to balance it but like you said, it’s hard not to let the “likes” affect you – especially with how competitive this space is getting (and I’m super late to the game as it is). I say…keep doing whatever you’re doing because to me it comes across as authentic and honest and because of that, you’re one of my faves to follow! I like to think that realness is going to have its moment soon – at least that’s what I’m telling myself 🙂
Kristin says
Thank you! I’m telling myself the same.
Emma says
I completely agree with what you have written. I used to love Instagram but I’m finding myself becoming more and more depressed with how inauthentic is seems to be becoming. I stopped using it for a couple of months before deciding to return and purge my feed of ‘influencers’ who I felt had lost what made them original and unique in the first place.
It’s also interesting that you aren’t the first travel blogger to write a post about this. I know of about three others who have been doing this for about as long as you have who have become disenfranchised with Instagram. I hope you find answers to your questions while you’re on break.
Kristin says
I read theirs too. I think we are all noticing the algorithm change and seeing people faking it making it and it’s hard when you’re not playing those games. I’ve been around long enough to know that those who take shortcuts never last, but it’s still disheartening.
JULIA D'ORAZIO says
I put my phone down for two weeks while touring the Black Forest and absolutely loved it. As an avid traveller, I am grateful I got to experience places before oversharing was a thing. Ironically, my phone just died. Time to be with my thoughts, book and pen again perhaps?
Kristin says
Perhaps!
yevandy says
You are speaking truths!!
I have taken multiple breaks off social media for my own mental health. I was super addicted to instagram. I feel i am much better now so Im back but with rules.
I only follow accounts that enrich me. i block people, stories and businesses with ease.
I schedule time to be online and I make sure I am learning or gaining something from it.
I started to treat Instagram like a business/ educational platform.
I am now of the opinion that social media isnt for fun any more.. It is a business and should be treated as such. I turn off my phone and hangout with my friends when I want to have fun.
I still have a soft spot for Youtube!!
Kristin says
That’s probably the approach I need to take.
Lindsay says
I agree! And I still love the art behind the accounts that I specially follow. I love photography and travelling and culture so it is amazing to see the beauty! My first solo Europe and Egypt trip was before iphones, Instagram, and Facebook had just started- still logged in to Internet cafes! (But even 10 years ago there were the boards of tourists and selfies- but I was travelling alone, and that wasn’t a word yet hahah!)
I have been following you for years and you are hands down my favorite- real, raw, talented! Enjoy your break, and I hope you find a way to share that matches your vision. I wouldn’t have found some of my favorite places in the world (Koh Lanta, Koh Rong) without reading your blog. And I hope to continue to enjoy whatever you create!
Kristin says
Ah so glad you liked Koh Rong! I know it has changed but it was so magical when I first went. I remember internet cafe days too! I guess humans resist change but in the end, it happens. Gotta roll with it.
GG says
1. As an entrepreneur if you can succeed with your business as free from dependence on other businesses as possible, that is great. Then you have more control of your destiny and of your creative ventures. Not saying not to use what is out there, ignore partnerships (where you and the other business are equals) and to start from scratch, I mean do your own thing with a core of supporters and then reaching out using tools to help enhance your product and diversify so you if you have to drop a tool, you still are moving forward, you are truly empowered. I am not an entrepreneur so easy for me to say, but have friends who say this makes sense, ideally :).
2. As an artist, Kristin, you are very talented and want to share her talent with others and many want to learn from you. You are teaching a new generation of bloggers how to express themselves through an art you love, and how to be have fun, not worry about likes/views, but to enjoy the whole thing and if you can make a living doing it while being true to yourself and your art/experiences, the better!
3. As for travel and environment, traveling has exploded in popularity over the years, largely irrelevant of specific social media like Instagram. You are doing little harm. They helped bring areas to people’s attention, but these places get attention eventually. Over-tourism existed before social media, I have experienced that personally seeing 2000 year old sites being damaged when traveling in the 1970s. I think Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat etc. have ridden this wave and are making good revenue in the process and their adverse impacts on individuals (self esteem, cyberbullying etc.) is there one way or another, wherever profits are to be had, another topic in itself (use social media with caution and it will be okay even great, but with caution). One person commented on Rainbow Mountain. When the snow melted and the mountain was revealed 5 years ago, that was the end of its isolation. Like everything travel blogging can be a positive or negative impact. Awareness of the environmental impacts can be advocated. Taking advantage of your partnerships with tourism boards around the world to advocate mitigation of tourism impacts can be accomplished especially if you have a core group of potential ethnically and environmentally minded travelers behind you like you have, Kristin. Governments are finally starting to address tourism better. Perhaps the surge of tourists would have been a little slower without the advent of the internet and apps, but I think in this case, Kristin’s tours and posts can be HELPFUL because I would need a full page to list the posts she has provided that have mentioned proper etiquette with locals, following local laws, the Leave No Trace Principles, preserving the precious spaces (no swimming in glacier lakes), carbon footprints (flying less), etc. Kristin, you taught me that you can travel anywhere in the world and help the area if you support the locals, the environment, and blend in as much as you can. I refused to travel in some areas in fear of exploitation, the things mentioned here. You taught me there is a way to do it properly and will one day give it a try.
4. Fake vs. genuine: Always be true to yourself and it is great that you reassess that from time to time. It is so easy to get caught up with the whole thing. For what it is worth, as you can see here and throughout your interactions with your supporters, you have a core group of thousands of supporters who like you being you and the more you are you, the more they like it. You are so fortunate to have such a great core group of people who not only enjoy your blogs/trips etc, but really care about you as a person and want you to be happy and successful. You really are a model of quality over quantity. If you can keep your business going this way sustainably you are blessed. So many smart people who you can get advice from who want to help because you have helped them. You have great ethics, a good sense, really smart, and work so hard so we all trust you too. So you are doing great! Hope you can resolve this within yourself and your business model and make 2019 even better! I think it is natural to check yourself and where you are going and make adjustments when needed. Disillusionment and feeling uncomfortable often leads to positive change. I hope this is the case here.
P.S. I would suggest looking at the article by the World Travel and Tourism Council compiled by McKinsey and Company: “Coping with Success: Managing Overcrowding in Tourism Destinations”
GG says
I see I missed the major point entirely. There is a new algorithm in Instagram that hurts the genuine who work so hard and favors the fakers who try the short cut. YouTube plays around with the algorithm all the time too. That kind of uncertainty and favoring the fakers is unsettling. And this and other impacts of social media that adversely impact travel and people’s well-being potentially. Sorry I missed the point. Would have written much less. Thanks to fellow commenters for bringing this to my attention, I have a lot to learn about all this, a bit out of my league and wish everyone a great Christmas and Happy New Year! I think everyone here has given a lot of great advice and this has been a great community to tap into, wonderful people. Nothing more to add.
Brit says
It’s hard for me to understand this fully because I’m new to this.
I’m the other side of the spectrum. I started traveling full time 5 years ago. Been to 50 plus countries, I’m still traveling. I spent the vast majority of that time without a phone at all. The plan however was always to start a travel blog.
Every year after 2014 I almost started, but i could sense how my fellow travelers around me were starting to change. And I couldn’t give up the raw love and travel I acquired for what looked like depression and aniexty. I wanted to completely establish who I was and what I wanted before I started.
2 months ago I finally started a travel blog and insta after 5 years of straight travel. I’m bummed that I feel I waited to long. Breaking in now isn’t what it would have been 4 or 5 years ago. But I wouldn’t give up the life I established (making money other ways) for an insta.
Good for you for knowing you need a break and taking it.
Kristin says
But starting now will be better than in 4 to 5 years 🙂
Mel says
Yeah, I feel you, Kristin. I’ve been aware your blog since it keeps coming up on my feed, but I never fully read about your journey until today. Thank you for writing this. This post pretty much nails in the head what I’ve been thinking for the past year. I’ve tried to address my feelings about instagram on my blog a few days ago, but yours is far more eloquent than what I came up with.
But I disagree that it’s for the likes. I think people are actually doing it with hopes to get sponsored these days.
I myself have 397k followers on Instagram thanks to it going viral 4 years ago. Back then, instagram was such a fun space and nobody was doing it for the money. but this year, I’ve chosen to step back from it and even more so over the past months. I can’t wait for this influencer bubble to burst as well. I’ve had some really cool travel opportunities thanks to Instagram, but it’s ridiculous how low the standard has been for a sponsored post or trips… it’s as if marketers have just heard that Instagram is the next big thing and they are blindly spending their budget on anyone that seems to have large following.
Ultimately I just can’t agree with how there are no distinction from those who use pods vs those who actually grew their following organically… surely the influence power of someone who gets their pod members to fake their engagement must be much lower than those who got their following from being who they are?
Until marketers figure this out though, the instagram fever won’t stop.
Kristin says
Hey Mel, I love your Instagram! I think it’s so unique and clever, and I’ve found myself doing ‘girl eat world’ inspired shots sometimes when I am holding a particularly pretty snack – when I remember to before taking a bite.
I think people are riding the influencer wave for the sponsorship for sure, and I’d want in, too, if it was as easy as joining pods and doing loops and watching the opportunities roll in, which it has been lately. Ugh.
I’m sorry that you’re stepping back from it, though, since I do love seeing your posts. I get it, though. It’s become disenchanting for all the reasons you mentioned.
Becca says
Thanks for this post! I traveled solo in SE Asia this summer for 3 months. You were a major inspiration to take on that adventure! Before I went, I loved instagram. I didn’t post a ton but I was addicted to seeing all the travel and dog photos in my feed. After the trip, I HATED instagram. So many times on the trip I couldn’t really take in a beautiful place because someone was prancing around in it try to get ~*the perfect*~ instagram shot. Maybe this is my problem, but I felt it cheapened the experience. It was distracting and made it hard to truly enjoy what was in front of me. When this would happen I would just give up and leave. I understand wanting to capture the moment, but instagram has made people shameless in the pursuit to get the perfect picture. Public attractions are just that — public! They are there for everyone to enjoy. But thanks to instagram, people treat them as a private photoshoot. I understand that you get up early to get pictures of just you in a special place; your solo photos are taken at the crack of dawn when the crowds are thinner. But now when I see other travel pictures with one person in them on instagram, all I can think about is the dozens of frustrated people that politely stood off to the side to allow this person to get the “perfect picture” of just them in that beautiful place. I think about not only how fake and artificial that is but also how that person knowingly diminished their fellow travelers’ experiences at that landmark for their own promotion.
Kristin says
I agree you can’t make other people wait to enjoy a place just so you can get a photo. I do tend to go early to just avoid that completely – and I selfishly do want the place all to myself! It honestly makes all the difference.
Aamir Wisal says
I need to thank you for this wonderful read.I agree! And I still love the art behind the accounts that I specially follow. I love photography and travelling and culture so it is amazing to see the beauty!I think the subject matter here is real superb,
Thankyou for your efforts.
Jacqueline says
Kristin, I have been reading your blog for years and this might be my favorite post yet. I agree with you 100% and respect you for not becoming just another influencer. I actually experienced that exact anxiety you talk about and I unfollowed all the fakers and Instagram models. But I still follow you because I can see though your content that your true passion is travel and creating. And THAT is what we need more of. I hope you will come back to Instagram after your break because the world needs more of your content.
Kristin says
Aw thanks so much for the kind words and I’m so glad you still wanted to follow me!
Richard Hunt says
I agree with many of your comments. I do not post much on Instagram, just some of pictures I think are beautiful. To me part of the joy of travel is to disconnect from daily life and your friends back home. When you have your cell phone at the ready for talking to those at home, you really aren’t building a space to experience what you are experiencing in the present.
When you use your cell phone to navigate rather than using paper maps and occasionally asking locals for directions, and use it to connect with your friends back home, you are missing out in being with those around you in their communities.
For me, I carry a mini iPad with just a wifi connection so I can check my emails, pay my bills, make plane and hotel/hostel reservations, and journal my experiences in my blog so communications back home is a lot less than if I had a cell phone.
Trish says
Hi Kristen,
I follow many travel and hiking. bloggers on Instagram but you are the only one who’s blog and email I read and follow your videos. I love that you share yourself and I feel like you share your experiences with us. I am saving my money in an envelope to take your photo class becuase i always look forward to your photos the most as they are different. You inspired me to take my first solo trip this fall for a month to Vietnam. At 45 I will stay in a hostel for the first time. I agree with you though it all is looking the same and I wish their was more art and personality involved. But I wanted you to know i appreciate everything you do and you a huge inspiration to me.
Kristin says
Aw thank you so much, Trish! I’m honored you like what I share and that it resonates with you. Yours and the other comments on this post definitely helped me to feel committed to the art and to stay the course. Thank you!
Theresa says
Ahh this is a tough one. I love that treehouse picture. It’s beautiful. We should be able to just post beautiful pictures and allow them to be appreciated.
Unfortunately that’s not how it plays out. People will go to that exact spot to get that same picture just to see if they can also get a large amount of likes. People, in my opinion, are not always traveling out of curiosity/interest/sense of adventure these days. It seems to be quite motivated by the photo. This seems to be travelers who don’t have respect for the land, culture, or people living in the places they visit, which is partially why overtourism is so horrible. These people don’t care about the impact their travel has, and it’s ruining these places for everyone else.
I was getting super sucked into Instagram last year when I first started my travel blog. Their tactics at sucking you in really do work! I never thought I’d be the type of person who’d stress or care about likes, but guess what? I was not immune. And it was distracting me from actually writing on my blog. I’m currently on an Instagram hiatus, but this article is making me wonder whether I should make it permanent…
Kristin says
I totally agree with you. I don’t know if I can manage a hiatus, I have to admit Instagram has done a lot for my career, but it sure doesn’t feel healthy!
Emilia says
Omg, I feel exactly the same. I recently traveled in Australia for 8 months and in the beginning I always used Instagram as an inspiration of places to go to until I realised how fake a lot of it really is. There was one time I went out of my way to go to an amazing national park where I’ve seen photos posted by a very successful influencer. She was sitting on these natural balconies with amazing views, and it looked gorgeous. Like the viewpoint of dreams. I pictured myself sitting there and drinking coffee during the sunrise, haha. But when I arrived I learned that the Balconies is forbidden to go out on due to unstable cliffs. There were big warning signs about fatal accidents and heavy fines and still people where standing and sitting there and posing for photos?! I did ofc enjoy the NP anyway, it was amazing, but I just found it SO weird that an influencer with 500000+ followers inspire people to break the law AND risk their life. There was also a swimming hole I saw a famous instagram couple bathing in that looked idyllic, but when I eventually came to this place with swimsuit on and towel in hand it was also fenced of due to high risk drowning area (because of the tides and strong currents), and it was also forbidden to climb over the fence. Even though, this successful instagram couple had done just that. Hopping over the fence and pretending to swim when in reality they probably couldn’t enjoy it due to it being both dangerous and forbidden. They were only doing it for the photos. The experience didn’t exist in real life. And the sad thing is that there is sooo many people around wanting to have the exact same photo, and therefore also ignoring the warning signs. But hey, everything for the gram right? This is only two times out of numerous ones that I’ve experienced this.
I know, this was a pretty long message, but I’ve been thinking about this quiet a lot lately and I feel a bit… sick about this whole thing and it’s nice to read that I’m not the only one feeling like this. I don’t have a big instagram account or anything, and don’t plan to work towards it either, but I really enjoy travel photography and somehow Instagram has made me enjoy it less lately.
And I also want to point out that I know that not all of travel influencers do it like this, but I just seen a lot of those during my travels in Australia.
Kristin says
That’s too bad they climbed over fenced off areas. Lots of people do that. I did once when I was sure I wouldn’t fall off the cliff and I saw lots of photos of others who did the same in that place but in hindsight we really shouldn’t have.
Jeremy says
Wow !! This piece is strong and honest ! I completely resonate with you ! I find myself obsessing over my IG, refreshing it every other minute ! And I actually turned off the app notification so I don’t get instant updates. But, I still find myself opening the app every time I unlock my phone ! I know it is toxic, but I hope this passes soon ! I think we all need some IG fasting once in awhile !
Kristin says
Word! You could always delete the app…